1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to ice axes used for ice or mountain climbing, and more particularly, to an ice axe which facilitates better penetration and gripping of ice on which the ice axe is used.
2. State of the Art
Ice and mountain climbing entail the extensive use of ice axes for ascending and descending ice, snow and rock, for positioning and driving anchor screws, bolts and pins, and for clearing obstacles. In ice climbing, the strength and safety of given placement depends largely upon getting the tip of the pick portion of the ice axe securely driven into the ice. Bulges in the ice or rock, or other obstacles, can inhibit driving the pick tip securely into the ice.
Attempts to enable driving the pick of an ice axe farther into ice or rock than would normally be possible, has resulted in equipment designers putting an exaggerated bend in the ice axe handle near the pick. That is, some ice axe handles have an exaggerated bend in the direction away from that of the pick, ostensibly to accommodate bulges or other obstacles which might otherwise interfere with the handle and prevent the pick from being driven in sufficiently far. Problems with this approach, however, are that (1) mass (the bend) is placed away from the center axis of the ice axe resulting in a higher rotational moment of inertia and making the axe feel unbalanced and unwieldly, and (2) the rotational center axis typically does not run through the handle at the grip area so it is more difficult keeping the axe in proper alignment for swinging the pick into ice or rock. Of course, it would be desirable to provide an ice axe in which the distance between the extreme tip of the pick and the near surface of the handle is maximized while at the same time configuring the axe such that the center axis thereof extends through the hand grip area of the handle to thus provide greater stability and control in using the ice axe.
Ice axes typically have a hammer head opposite the pick on the axe's working end. This hammer is designed primarily for driving bolts or pins. On conventional ice axes the hammer portion of the axe head is shorter than the pick relative to the center of the axe handle, and typically has a bottom surface that is flat. Additionally, the hammer is often provided with rounded flat side edges surrounding the hitting surface. This configuration causes the hammer head to function poorly as a means of engaging rock or ice and inhibits use of the hammer head for support on small ledges or in small pockets. Because of these concerns, some ice axes have a shorter pick opposite the longer standard pick, instead of a hammer head. While this configuration is useful for shallow depth hooking applications, the utility of a hammer is sacrificed. Thus, the user must choose between the ability to hammer spikes, etc., and the ability to grip in shallow pockets or rock edges.